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A Detailed List of Discovery Commons Projects
Projects which have been fully achieved Develop the Discovery Commons Helpdesk
o In 2006 we hired our first dedicated Helpdesk staff member, implemented a helpdesk ticketing system, and dedicated a phone number and email address to it. Since then, usage of the helpdesk has (as shown in the graph below) grown significantly; to the point where meeting the demand has, at times, become a significant challenge. We are currently working both to improve service, and to set realistic service expectations.
Review and Reconfigure Core Services
o As part of the physical combining of operations in 2007 we reviewed our overall service offerings and standardized them in 2008 in the form of a Discovery Commons Price List, which is what we now refer to when asked to develop an estimate or quote.
o Pricing aside, the list of services is subject to constant change, based on the demands of our clients and the strategic goals of the Faculty of Medicine and its academic programs.
Hire a Dedicated Business Officer
o In late 2006 we hired a full-time business officer, which very quickly proved to be a key position in the management of a cost-recovery service organization such as ours.
o Given the amount of billing / invoicing that we do, in 2009 we added a part-time “accounting assistant” position to enter, process, and follow up on recoverables. Renegotiate Knowledge4You Service Level Agreements
o In 2006 we worked with both Undergraduate and Postgraduate Medical Education programs to renegotiate service level agreements (SLAs) with Knowledge4You, the developer of our POWER1 and MedSIS2 student information systems.
o However, these SLAs, which expire in 2011, did not result in the predicted cost savings of $300K/yr we had hoped could partially fund the expansion of
Discovery Commons.
APPENDIX 23
Page 2 of 7 Implement the Discovery Commons Integrated Space Plan
o With the impetus and funding coming from the plan to create a new medical academy in Mississauga, in 2007/08 the Discovery Commons underwent a complete renovation and space integration, resulting in the current Discovery Commons complex on the third floor of the Medical Sciences Building (see before and after photos, below).
o This complex is even more extensive than was planned for in the Strategic Plan, with larger and richer teaching facilities, and better staff space; however, given the ever expanding staff (both for core activities and for the WebCV project), the fact that our overall footprint was reduced continues to be a challenge.
Improve Webspace Management
o In early 2007 the Discovery Commons, in collaboration with the Dean and the Faculty’s new Director of Communications, undertook a major redesign of the Faculty’s website, http://www.facmed.utoronto.ca/, which is hosted by the University’s CMS service.
o This redesign resulted in a website that was improved in almost every way, from usability, levels of usage (see graphs below), distribution of responsibility for content management, alignment with the University’s official branding guidelines, and the use of photos of real students, faculty, and staff.
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Ongoing projects on which we have made substantial progress
Implement a Web-Based CV Management System3
o In December 2009 we completed “Phase I” of the WebCV project, which
included the licensing and customization of the WebCV software, the substantial completion of the rollout in the Department of Medicine, the creation of a
WebCV team, the development of the CommonCV interface, and the appointment of an Academic Director.
o Phase II of the WebCV project involves the expansion of the rollout to other academic departments, increases and improvements to the reports available within the software, increases in the capacity of the WebCV team, and a continued focus on joint funding.
o We currently envisage “substantial completion” of Phase II to happen by April 2013, our target being the entry of CVs and training of 80% of the Faculty’s full-time faculty.
Develop Faculty ICT Standards and Policies (i.e. core systems)
o The Strategic Plan envisioned the establishment of a “managed desktop” model at the Faculty of Medicine, to reduce costs, provide better security and performance, and to reduce the amount of support required.
o Because IT assets and budgets are managed departmentally, we found that we were not able to implement this model as outlined; however, what we did do was implement a new Microsoft Exchange server (email, calendaring, file sharing), which provides many of the benefits of a managed desktop without the need to impose central control.
o It is important to note that the Faculty’s Exchange system provided the University with the foundation upon which they later built the larger UTORExchange
service, and that the two systems were designed from the beginning to work seamlessly together. This kind of partnership is a relatively new and very positive phenomenon at the University.
o In 2006, as outlined in the Strategic Plan, a powerful administrative web application server platform was purchased and put in place
(admin.med.utoronto.ca), which has since hosted many important development projects.
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o In 2009 we collaborated closely with the central ITS group at the University in developing a “virtual server” service, from which divisions could request specific computing power on a flexible and cost-effective basis. By mid-2010 our plan is to move most of our hosted web applications to this new service.
o Based on the need to adhere to the new Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy (FIPPA) legislation in 2009 we developed and promoted a detailed set of
Guidelines for the Security of Electronic Personal Information.4 Build Ties to Departmental ICT Support
o Although progress on this project has been relatively slow, we have managed to establish good and productive relationships with the independent ICT staff in a number of large departments or sectors, including the Rehab Sector and the Departments of Medicine, Family and Community Medicine, and Psychiatry.
o These relationships include the shared usage of the ticketing system, coverage during vacations or absences, joint projects, and attendance at general ICT staff meetings.
Make Improvements to ICT in Teaching Spaces
o As part of our major renovation, we upgraded the Discovery Commons teaching spaces significantly, with a fully outfitted meeting room, three laptop-based computer labs (totalling 100 seats), a multi-purpose studio, and four 10-seat breakout rooms.
o In addition, the major MSB lecture theatres (3153 and 3154) were renovated, and the AV equipment upgraded to the latest standard.
o As a result of these upgrades and a renewed focus on maximizing the utilization of these spaces, usage of the Discovery Commons teaching spaces has increased significantly:
Establish Collaborative Environments
o The Faculty of Medicine, via Discovery Commons, the Undergraduate Medical Education Program, and the Rehab Sector, were leaders in the University at making use of the University’s new Blackboard-based Learning Portal5
, launched in 2006. We currently hold the largest number of “course shells” in the system, many of which require constant and active management in order to keep current.
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o Usage of the Portal has now expanded to the Postgraduate Program (as part of their PGCoreEd program), the new Physician Assistant Program, and extensive use of the Portal’s “Organization” functionality for extra-curricular and
administrative purposes.
Develop New Web Applications
o In the first couple of years of operation, the Discovery Commons was not focused on the development of web applications; however, some pre-existing applications (such as the eLog case logging system and Census HR reporting system) were upgraded, and others (like the Appointment Renewal Application6) were developed to meet ”niche” needs.
o Starting in 2007 a higher priority was placed on the development of strategic web-based applications, and between then and the end of 2009 some major new
systems were developed, included the UGME Visiting Electives application7, the UGME Curriculum Map system8, the DFCM Teaching Practice Matching
System9, and the very extensive MedLink Faculty Directory10 system (which builds on and expands the Census system).
o With a strong foundation in place, in 2010 we are planning a significant
expansion in our development capabilities and goals, including the development of an integrated student Launchpad which integrates their applications into a single location and combines it with a rich set of general-purpose communication and collaboration tools. This project builds on the work we have done with MedLink, and will also align with improvements the University is making in the area of identity management and single-sign-on.
o In addition to system development, we are also planning the implementation of an enterprise content management (ECM) system for the Faculty, which will, over the next five years, support a wide variety of group-centric and labour-intensive document related processes, starting with the Academic Promotions process. Create and Enhance Curriculum Resources
o The Strategic Plan discussed the creation of interactive curriculum resources, such as PBL modules and procedural simulations, and the establishment of robust collaborative environments. Although there appears to be a growing demand for the latter (the new “Launchpad” concept), the true appetite for the former has still not been established.
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o In Postgraduate Medical Education, we have seen significant growth in the use of interactive learning modules through their PGCoreEd initiative. Likewise, great effort has been put into moving Undergraduate curriculum materials online (i.e. into the Portal) and mapping the curriculum using those digital materials. However, to date, not much energy has been put into actually re-visiting the curriculum and re-forming it into a more interactive and less monolithic set of materials.
Projects which have not yet been achieved as planned Document and Upgrade the Network
o The Faculty of Medicine’s network encompasses 10 buildings, and consists of equipment which ranges from 10+ years old to brand new. Although
improvements and fixes are being made continually to deal with outages and new demands, the funding and staffing for a major documentation and overhaul have simply not yet been made available, and other less daunting and more urgent priorities have taken precedence.
Develop the Discovery Commons Communications Plan
o Although the Discovery Commons has become almost a “household word” within the Faculty, this was largely due to word-of-mouth rather than a concerted
communication plan, as was envisaged in the Strategic Plan. Other than the website, the newsletters and journals and lecture series outlined in the Strategic Plan have not materialized, having been pushed aside by more urgent operational priorities.
Projects introduced after the Strategic Plan was written The Mississauga Academy
o When the Strategic Plan was written, the new Mississauga Academy had not yet been announced. This project has had a huge influence on the way the Discovery Commons has developed, and has led to major space changes, as well as changes in the focus of our staffing and activities in AV. With the opening of the Academy now scheduled for September 2011, a great deal of work still needs to be done to ensure that the technical infrastructure and staffing are in place to support it.
o One of our major accomplishments has been the successful creation of a dedicated fiber-optic network link between the MSB and the UTM, which will be used to support the use of high-definition videoconferencing. This network was created on time and under budget, and in close cooperation with the University’s network operations. We continue to push for better integration with OTN and the hospitals in Mississauga.
MedLink and Consolidated Data Management
o Given the sheer size and scope of the Faculty of Medicine, it is no surprise that the management of accurate, up-to-date, and complete information about our
Page 7 of 7 people is a significant challenge; however, in the Strategic Plan, we did not fully recognize just how significant it would be, or how inaccurate and incomplete our data truly was.
o Our efforts to improve our data have included advocating for improvements to HRIS and ROSI; working with HR to train business officers in data management best practices; working with HR and the central Advancement office to improve alumni data; and developing reporting and data consolidation applications like MedLink to provide, for the first time, a comprehensive “directory” of everyone at the Faculty.
o A good example of our success in this area is the improvement we have been able to make to the Dean’s bi-weekly MedEmail newsletter11
. Not only did we give it an attractive new graphical design, but via MedLink have increased the mailing list from 2,824 at the beginning of 2009 to 12,557 at the end of the year. We continue to make improvements to our systems and processes, and are now approaching 14,000 active email addresses (which are also, not incidentally, used for emergency communications).
1 http://pgme.med.utoronto.ca 2 http://medsis.utoronto.ca 3
More information is available on the project website, at http://webcv.utoronto.ca/
4 Available at the Discovery Commons website, http://dc.med.utoronto.ca/ 5 http://portal.utoronto.ca/ 6 http://admin.med.utoronto.ca/ara/ 7 http://admin.med.utoronto.ca/utme/ 8 http://cmap.med.utoronto.ca/ 9 http://admin.med.utoronto.ca/tpms/ 10 http://admin.med.utoronto.ca/ccdb/ 11
